Jerry Bridges: one of my all-time favorite "spirital" authors

I don't have much time for extra reading this semester; I'm homeschooling three children part-time (they're in a university model school which meets three mornings/week), I'm in my final year of coursework for my School Library/Information Science degree, and I'm still a wife and mother in the midst of it all ☺.

BUT, I'm still making time to do a book study with a friend. Why? Because we're studying a book by Jerry Bridges--one of my all-time favorite spiritual authors. I'll be reporting soon on some more children's book related items, but for now, here's a brief foray into the world of grown-up books.

Jerry Bridges has a knack for communicating spiritual truth that is at once both profound and basic. There is meat to his books, material I find myself chewing on and applying to my life even as it challenges me to go back to Scripture, to study to show myself approved, and to learn more about this great God whom we serve. And yet, his books are amazingly approachable, even if you don't have any background in the faith, if you're a newcomer to Christianity, or simply from a different denomination which has stressed slightly different aspects. (Bridges is what I would term Reformed, but I don't know what denomination he claims.) He has worked for the Navigators for the past 50 or so years! To me, the most distinctive aspects of his books are these:

• grounded in Scripture--indeed, they overflow with Scripture references
• God-focused--it all comes back to who God is rather than focusing solely on mankind

I have not read all of Bridges' works (he's a prolific author!). But those listed below are all well worth taking some time out of your busy schedule to peruse. Read with pen in hand and be willing to create some marginalia!

Trusting God Even When Life Hurts

My current study. Trusting God is the most prominent part of the title on my copy; I think the second half is a bit misleading. I don't feel like life "hurts" most of the time, so I put off reading this gem until this year. This book is about trusting God. In all areas. In all situations. A reminder that God is sovereign--even over nature and nations (a timely reminder given our upcoming election season). 

Transforming Grace

Wow!! This book changed my life. Really and truly. If you're familiar with Sonship, this book is similar but it starts with who God is, not who man is (and man's sin--he gets to that, but he begins first with the Lord).

Disciplines of Grace

A follow-up, in a sense, to Transforming Grace. Well worth reading and a succinct look at the practical aspects of our Christian walk.

The Gospel for Real Life

This might become my high school/college graduation gift of choice. It is EXCELLENT. Even if you've been a Christian your entire life, you will benefit from this book. A bit of rehash from Transforming Grace in parts; it would be a terrific refresher if you've read TG years ago and want to revisit it in a newer form (and with new information).

The Crisis of Caring

Another misleading title, this book sounds like it's only for those in position as care givers or perhaps those in charge of mercy ministry. Rather, it's an exploration of Christian fellowship and the ways in which we bear one another's burdens.






Next up on my Bridges-to-read list: Respectable Sins (mostly because I already own it ☺). Which Bridges book is your favorite?

Cover images from NavPress and Goodreads

Betsy's Summer Nonfiction Reads (Weekly Round-up)

Not much reading on the homefront these days. I've been cooking more, working on some heavy duty (and hitherto neglected) cleaning chores, spending some lovely extended evenings with friends, and enjoying play time with the kids. I've also read several interesting nonfiction books this summer--these are slower reads than the middle grades fiction I can whip through, so my "tally" in terms of numbers isn't as high. But since I'm not doing homework this summer (yea!), I've had more brain power to devote to books like these. Here is a snapshot of what I've been reading (in no particular order):

Simplicity Parenting by Kim John Payne


A GREAT book all the way around as far as encouraging you to reign in commitments, toys, and other cluttering items in your life. While this book is from a secular perspective, I thought it dovetailed nicely with many Christian books I've read on parenting as well. Definitely worth a read--it's nice to have an "expert" be reassuring us we don't have to keep up with the Joneses and have our 4-year-olds competing in soccer, training for a ballet career, or going to extra academic classes to get ahead. It's a good reminder, too, to analyze our house's collection of play equipment, to reevaluate our routines (from food to sleep to general schedule), and to enjoy a little more time with one another.

10 Things Parents Must Teach Their Children by Edith Schaeffer

I've recently reviewed this gem, so I'll do more than to say it's worth reading--whether or not you're a parent!

Calm My Anxious Heart by Linda Dillow

This book has been recommended to me several times over the years when various friends of mine have read it and thoroughly enjoyed it. I finally picked it up--and am glad I did! Dillow, very biblically, explores many issues surrounding contentment, or the lack thereof. Very convicting, even if you think you don't really struggle with contentment (she covers lots of ground here).

Before the Throne of God by Carol J. Ruvolo

I've been reading this for my women's Bible study at church, and it's pretty good. I have mild quibbles with the writing style here and there (I did, also, with Dillow's book). Overall, though, it's very Biblical, and challenges us to pray using Scripture as our base.

Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense by Ellyn Satter


Explores how parents should (but often do not) feed their children, how to encourage children to eat more variety--particularly vegetables, and things like that. Her big push is the division of labor: parents choose when, what, and how to serve food-wise; children choose how much to eat. Much of this book is devoted to infant and toddler feeding needs/strategies/recommendations. I skipped those chapters. Worth reading for those interested in these sorts of things, but I don't 100% agree with everything (isn't that always the case?! ☺).

French Kids Eat Everything by Karen Le Billon



Wow! One of my favorite reads this summer (so far ☺). A Canadian woman married to a Frenchman; they decide to spend a year in Brittany near his family and their children are preschool and kindergarten ages. What follows is an unintended expose of some of the poorer North American habits and attitudes towards food (particularly where children are concerned) and a fascinating comparison to the French attitude. Not rocket science, but very interesting and inspiring--in part because it reminded me of the general attitude toward food in Europe and so much of the rest of the world. Let's not focus so much on health, per se, but on enjoying and savoring our food rather than gobbling down "our money's worth" at an all-you-can-eat-buffet, on anticipating the next meal instead of grabbing a mediocre snack to tide us over, and on the social component of eating together.

An Economist Gets Lunch: New Rules for Everyday Foodies by Tyler Cowen


Another interesting, albeit slower, read. If you, like me, enjoy reading and discussing food-related issues (everything from finding a good ethnic restaurant to musing over the seeming tension between locavores and big agribusiness to celebrating BBQ to wondering why the American food scene is the way it is...), then you will no doubt find this book interesting. As a former English teacher, I think this book might be easier to listen to; he may write well for an economist but the paucity of punctuation at times and the general writing style sometimes gets on my nerves ☺.

Code Name Verity

Code Name Verity
Elizabeth Wein
Hyperion
2012
Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book
2013 Printz Honor


If this book doesn't win an award, I'll eat my hat. Thankfully, I don't think that will be necessary. If it is necessary, I might eat the award committee(s)' hat(s). (update 6/12/12: BG-HB Honor! 1/29/13: Printz Honor!)

This is the absolute best modern young adult novel I have read in recent years. And that's saying a lot because there are some really great ones out there. It's also one of those "young adult" novels that will be enjoyed equally well by grown-ups (after all, the main characters are in their early 20s I believe).

Two girls who are truly best friends. Two girls, each telling part of the story. Two girls, one English and one Scottish, each involved in the war effort. Two girls, one rich and one middle class. Two girls, each doing work traditionally done by men. Two girls, each braver than I think I will ever be.

Three by Kate Morton

The House at Riverton (2007; Pan Books)
The Forgotten Garden (2008; Pan Books)
The Distant Hours (2010; Atria)
Kate Morton



Kate Morton hails from Australia, but all of her books are set in England. I don't know if she has visited England, but her books have a remarkable sense of "place." And her three books bear other remarkable similarities to each other:

• a mysterious estate or castle in England filled with dark family secrets 
• aging family members who've held those secrets close 
• modern (ca. 1990s) heroine who finds tangible evidence of said secrets (like, a letter) 
• the awareness on the part of modern heroine that her own mother is somehow intimately connected with the mysterious castle and its strange inhabitants
• the revelation of said secrets through sleuthing by the modern heroine
• the gradual understanding of her own mother and family through the knowledge gained
• said secrets encompassing multiple issues: emotional love affairs and/or murder and/or suicide and/or betrayal and/or madness in the family...
• and an intricate plot slowly unraveled through jumping back and forth in time and between various narrators

Gothic in inspiration, full of references to book lovers and the profound impact even a single book can have on someone if it is read at the right impressionable age, and the overwhelming sense of place (and the effect that place has on its inhabitants and visitors) round out Morton's writing, making these novels some of my favorites for a long day of reading-on-the-couch-curled-up-under-a-blanket-and-sipping-tea. Once I get about halfway through one of these hefty tomes (think: 500 pages +/-), I cannot put the book down. I love me some good mystery. The reader gradually figures out what is going on before the big reveal(s), but, as I said in my goodreads review of The Forgotten Garden, "In my experience, a misty castle in the distance that gradually grows clearer and clearer as more details are ascertained never spoils a pleasant journey."
 
 I must confess that I don't enjoy the actual secrets that are revealed too much because they're often depressing, sordid, or just plain wrong--but the journey there is addictive. I like that Morton's books are pretty clean in the sense of anything being described explicitly, little foul language, and the like; but the dark family secrets involve some messy "stuff."

Is it possible to write a gripping mystery and dark Gothic novel without having the main historical characters be so disturbing? I know I haven't actually *read* Jane Eyre, but I know that's a good example of having dark secrets (and even a mad woman!). Hmm.... worth pondering.

For now, I space these kinds of books out in my reading...too much rich chocolate cake isn't good for me :-).